Indicating coin-holder for telephone-users.



E..F.STONE. INDIOATING COIN HOLDER FOR TELEPHONE USERS. APPLICATION FILED JAN.14. 1909.

941,824. Patented Nov. 30, 1909.

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INDICATING COIN-HOLDER FOR TELEPHONE-USERS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Xov, 30, 1909.

Application filed January 14, 1909. Serial No. 472,180.

My invention is concerned with a novel coin or token holder adapted to be used with coin in the slot telephones where said telephones are contracted for on the basis of so many calls within a certain period'of time, and if the user is behind when the collector calls he has to pay the deficit, for which payment he gets no service. It is therefore of value to the user to have some coin or token holder to be used in connection therewith that will enable him to tell at a glance how his account stands so that if he sees he is running behind about the time the collector is to be expected. he may make some extracalls so as to balance his account and prevent the likelihood of having to pay for calls which he has not had. A. very common form of such contract is where the contractor deposits anickel or token in the slotfor each call and guarantees a call a day and the collection is made once a month, and accord ingly, I have shown my holder as arranged especially for such a contract, although it will be understood that it might be modified for any similar contract with either a definite coin to bedeposited, or with a definite number of calls guaranteed, or with the collections made at longer or shorter intervals.

T 0 illustrate my invention, 1 annex hereto a sheet of drawings, in which the same reference characters are used to designate iden tical parts in all the fi ures, of which,

Figure 1 is a front e evation of my holder in its preferred formyFig. 2 is a vertical section on the line i k- A of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line B-B, of Fig. 1.

- Incarrymg out my invention, I provide some suitable base a which supports the holders proper, and which is preferably provided with one or more apertures Z by which it can be suspended or secured in a vertical position atsome convenient place adjacent the telephone. I preferably-employ an individual holder-for each fractional period of the time between collections, as, for in stance, a holder for each day of the month in the ordinary contract above described. These holders are preferably formed by the pairs of opposed recesses c, which are adapted to have a coin inserted therein, as inclicated in dotted lines at (Z and at, 6. These recesses are conveniently formed in the strips 7' and g, which are secured to, or might be made integral with the base Qn one of the strips, preferably g, 1 place the numerals h, which indicate the days of the month. and there is one numeral opposite each of the holders, and there are 31 of the holders to correspond with the longest months of the Vear.

Itis convenient to employ in connection with the numeral index, a calendar index, which preferably consists of the strip j mounted to slide in the correspondingly shaped groove formed in the surface of the strip 9, and held therein by any suitable means, such as the cross-pieces k and I, to the strips f and g. In order to make this calendar index suitable for a perpetual calendar, itis provided with the names of the days of the week repeated five or more times and spaced apart a distance, equal distance, between the numerals h. A leaf spring m, located in a recess a in the strip g, or some other suitable retaining means, is employed to produce a friction on the strip -2' and hold it in any position to which it may be adjusted. This strip maybe provided with the indicating marks 0 opposite each of some of the days of the week, such as Monday, in order to cenveniently divide the calendar strip into weeks. The whole readily apparent.

Supposing the collector has made a call on the 8th of the month, the user may insert a coin in the holder opposite the numeral 8, and place another conveniently beneath and then move it down one step for every call that he makes. The calendar strip. if it is employed. will, of course, be

adjusted so that the days of the week cor respond to the days of the month for that particular month. As the month advances, the indicating token at 6 will be moved down, and if a call a day is made, on the 22d it should be at the position shown. If

the: user gets behind, itwill be noticed bythe next month I followin claims excc it.

senting the number to be WJll be apparent ifhe gets ahead of the re qui'red number of calls. lVhen the 8th of is not well up toward the token (Z, the user will know that. he should'make some extra calls if he desires to take no chances of the collector coming before he has brought his number of calls up to the number contracted for. Of course, it will be understood that instead of using a single token c,'the user might, after eachcall by the collector, fill up the entire set of holders with coins, and thenthe number of coins remaining will indicate how many calls shouldvbe made before the expected arrival of the collector.

While I have shown and described my invention as embodied inthe form which I consider best adapted to carrv out. its purposes, it will be understood that it is capable of modifications, and that I do not desire to be limited in the interpretation of the as may be necessitated by the state of the prior art.

\Vhat I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. In a device for the purposes described, the combination with a base adapted to be supported in a vertical position and having a column of token holder recesses therein, each. adapted to hold a single coin or token by its edge in ahorizontal position so that it can be withdrawn at any time without disturbing the others, of an index associated therewith consistin of consecutive arranged numerals for each recess together with the days of the week associated with said numerals.

2. In a device for the purpose described, the combination with a. base, of a plurality of token holders thereon each adapted to hold coins or tokens to a fixed amount repreused during a tractional period, the combined capacity of the token holders representing an amount to be paid at each collection covering a unit period, and an index associated therewith the position of this coin e, and likewise, it

approaches, if the token 0' the combination with a base,

ames consisting of a stationary member carrying numerals for the daysiot' the month with a numeral corresponding to each holder, and a movable member carrying the days of the week repeated a plurality of times and adjustable relativeto the days of the month.

3. In a device for the purpose described, the combination with a base, of a pair of recessed strips associated therewith having their recesses opposed to receive coins or tokens, each' pairof recesses adapted to hold coins or tokens to a fixed amount representing the number to be used during a fractional period, the combined capacity of the recesses representing an amount to be paid at each collection covering a unit period, said strips being provided with numerals for the days of the month corresponding to each pair of opposed recesses, and a member movable adjacent the numerals and having marked thereon the days of the week.

4. In a device for the purpose described, of a pair of recessed strips associated therewith having their recesses opposed to receive coins or tokens,each pair of recesses adapted to hold coins or tokens to a fixed amount representing the number to be used during a fractional period, the combined capacity of the recesses representing an amount to -be paid at arch collection covering a unit period, said strips being provided with numerals for the days of the month corresponding to each pair of opposed recesses, a member movable adjacent the numerals and having marked thereon the days of the Week, and means for retaining said member in any position of adjustment.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and atlixed my seal, this 8th day of January,'A. D. 1909.

lVitnesses J onx HOWARD F. E. BROM.

MoELnoY, 

